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Shelly Larson steps down as Melissa Memorial Hospital’s CFO. Jim Rush of Oregon is hired to act as interim CFO.

Jan. 8

Christopher Matthew Hansen, son of J.J. and Samantha Hansen of Lamar, Neb., is born at MMH on Saturday, Jan. 3, claiming Holyoke’s “First Baby of the Year” honors for 2009.

Yearly weather report depicts 2008 as a year with higher highs, more precipitation and a lower low than what was seen in 2007.

Memories of the Depression years are shared by residents of Regent Park and Carriage House.

HJHS Student Council members dedicate a new tile Dragon sign in the junior high Commons Area on Jan. 6.

Jan. 15

City of Holyoke employees receive wage increases for 2009 to compensate for a heightened cost of living.

Holyoke and Amherst Volunteer Fire Depts. are summoned on Jan. 6 to a fire that burned hundreds of acres west of Imperial, Neb.

History of Amherst community is featured on KOGA Radio Station in its monthly Midwest Opinions: My Town segment. Speakers during the segment include Ken Oltjenbruns, Neil Hassler and Elton Oltjenbruns.

New welcome committee is formed at Regent Park and Carriage House.

Elisa Sagehorn recalls her travels through China in November as a state FFA officer.

Pastor Kurt Hatteberg is installed at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Amherst and Venango, Neb.

Dustin Wieland earns his Eagle Scout rank at a Court of Honor held Jan. 18.

Remodeling of Phillips County Communications Center is complete after a year of renovations, and an open house is scheduled to commemorate the event. The remodeling included upgrading and installing new equipment in the dispatch area.

HHS junior Duncan Brandt is recognized as the District IV winner of the annual Voice of Democracy contest.

Maddie Starkebaum and Dylan Bradley are recognized on Jan. 16 for being HHS’s selections for Wendy’s High School Heisman awards.

Jan. 29

Dr. Stephen Bohrer resigns from his position as superintendent of Holyoke School District Re-1J.

Junior Megan Colglazier and HHS graduate Laura Mailander attend the Presidential Inauguration of Barack Obama in Washington, D.C. and share their stories with the Enterprise.

International speaker and abortion survivor Gianna Jessen speaks to a crowd of 400 at The Caring Pregnancy Resource Center of Northeast Colorado’s Holyoke fund raising banquet.

Second Thoughts, a new second-hand consignment store located inside J’s Home Furnishings, is opened by Barb Kreider and her daughter Summer Maloney.

Brittney Ferguson, a rehab patient at Craig Hospital in Englewood after being in a serious car accident in Laramie, Wyo. in September, turns 20. Holyoke Chamber of Commerce sponsors a benefit raffle for the Ferguson family.

Feb. 5

Four babies are born at MMH during the month of January, reports administrator John Ayoub.

Phillips County and Melissa Memorial Hospital Foundation are honored for the second straight year by NECALG for making the highest total contributions through the Northeastern Colorado Enterprise Zone.

Holyoke FCCLA chapter members Mallory Bennett and Taylor Haidle are elected district president and secretary, respectively, at the district meeting in Sterling Jan. 28.

Feb. 12

Kameron Knight, owner of S&W Auto, is named Star of the Year by local Chamber of Commerce. Others recognized include Ryan Baumgartner, Youth of the Year; Steve Young, Citizen of the Year; Tammy Kroeger, Employee of the Year; and Holyoke Marketplace, Business of the Year.

Feb. 26

Holyoke City Council announces Pelstar Development will not be building a Pamida store in Holyoke.

Chad Stroh becomes the first Holyoke Dragon wrestler ever to win two state wrestling championships after taking gold in the 125-lb. 2A division at the Pepsi Center in Denver on Feb. 21. Other medalists include Mark Edmonds, third; Skyler Dittmer, third; Luke Garrett, fourth; and Brian Strong, sixth.

Local chapter members of Thrivent earn a “Chapter of Excellence” award for their contributions to the community.

April 9

New Congresswoman Betsy Markey speaks to and takes questions from Holyoke JR/SR High students in an assembly on April 6.

Brittney Ferguson and family return home after nearly six months of living in hospitals because of injuries Brittney suffered in a Sept. 25, 2008 car accident in Laramie, Wyo.

29 out of 32 HHS FCCLA members claim gold medals at the state conference in Denver April 2-4.

April 16

Former Melissa Memorial Hospital building is purchased by “The Core Group,” comprised of Paul and Teresa Mailander, Dennis Oliver, Dorothy Ortner and Bonnie Patterson, with the intent of turning it into a center for the arts.

A strong showing of support is made at the April 17 Holyoke City Council for Police Chief Phil Biersdorfer, following widespread talk that the police chief will not be re-appointed.

Weston Finch, son of Zeke Finch and Robin Conklin, returns to Holyoke with his wife Aniela after serving several years in the military as an Army Ranger.

HHS junior Chad Stroh earns High School All-American status at the High School Wrestling Nationals in Virginia Beach, Va.

New Highway 385 signs are unveiled by the High Plains Highway Coalition.

Phillips County Raceway track size is reduced from a half-mile to 3/8 mile track.

Holyoke’s Amanda Bennett is one of six recognized at May 8 commencement ceremony at the University of Colorado for having a 4.0 throughout her college years.

May 21

Juniors Kyle Carper and Marissa Smith earn double golds at the 2A State Track Meet in Lakewood, May 14-16. Carper wins long jump and triple jump, while Smith takes first in the 200 and 400 meter races.

Phillips County Rodeo Club hosts the Colorado Junior Rodeo Association event at the Fairgrounds May 16-17, drawing hundreds of young competitors.

Centennial Mental Health moves to its new location at 115 N. Campbell Ave.

Duncan Brandt and Austin Killin are medal winners in critical thinking at the 2009 NJC Math/Science Contest held April 16.

May 28

Sara Bohrer resigns her seat on Holyoke City Council at May 19 meeting. Police chief reports and code enforcement position are reviewed and evaluated due to recent complaints.

Retiring teachers Clark Ginapp and Jerry Williamson look back on their years at HHS.

David Bloemker of Greeley is offered a fifth-grade teaching contract for 2009-10 school year.

Star 92.3 broadcaster John Thayer leaves the local station after landing a job with College Fanz Sports Network.

Roy Pfaltzgraff’s crew erects the first wind turbine in Holyoke at Paul Mailander’s home, east of town.

Holyoke Community Helpers gives grants to Vernon and Ferguson families in final stage of Penny Harvest project.

Thom and Julie Elliott are new STS exchange program representatives for the area.

June 11

Holyoke City Council sends a letter of intent to Colorado State Trails Grant committee to apply for funds for a walking path to be located on the south side of Johnson Street, from Highway 385 to Melissa Memorial Hospital.

Recent activities of Holyoke Volunteer Fire Dept. are recognized just in time for the annual Firemen’s Ball. Included is the hosting of the 2009 Firefighter 1 Training Academy.

First Party Receivables of Greeley is hired by hospital district to take over the self-pay billing at Family Practice of Holyoke.

Harvey and Doris McCune are Phillips County Fair grand marshalls for 2009.

Chris Lee joins The Holyoke Enterprise staff as a reporter.

June 18

Cooler temperatures and cloudy skies dominate the weather forecast in June, with total rainfall for the month recorded at 5.83 inches.

President/CEO Harlan Stern announces his retirement from Grainland Cooperative after a 40-year career in the cooperative system.

Local Jolly Dozen FCE Club hosts the State FCE Convention at the Peerless Theatre June 11-14. Viola Colglazier is recognized as a 60-year member of FCE.

HHS baseball players Austin Tharp and Logan Krueger are cited in the Denver Post’s Best of the Best listing. Also recognized in the track and field listings are tracksters Kyle Carper and Marissa Smith.

June 25

Destructive hail in Holyoke and Amherst area results in 27 percent loss of county wheat.

J.C. Peckham fills vacant city council seat.

Greg Was begins his role as CFO at Melissa Memorial Hospital.

SIDS claims the life of 4-month-old Tyler Waln, son of Beau and Angie Waln.

Five Indonesians visit the Holyoke area to study agricultural operations.

Sept. 3

East Phillips County Hospital receives positive results from community satisfaction survey.

Severine Barras from Switzerland spends the year in Holyoke as a foreign exchange student.

2006 HHS graduate Kurtis Huss returns to Holyoke as a student teacher for 10th grade American History.

Phillips County Historical Society gathers family history for a third volume of “Those Were the Days” history book.

Sept. 10

Supt. Bret Miles presents to the school board the Colorado Department of Education’s new growth model for evaluating CSAP scores to chart the progress each school has made over time.

U.S. Senator for Colorado Michael Bennet makes stop near Paoli to speak with farmers and agriculture community leaders in the area.

Holyoke School District Re-1J School Board approves investment of scholarship moneys in the amount of $130,000.

Sarah Heermann earns State Champion honors in Western Horse Division of Level II for 16-18-year-olds at the Colorado State Fair in Pueblo.

Sept. 17

Twenty-one new American flags fly at Holyoke Cemetery Sept. 11. The project was the vision of the Millage family.

The Miles farm, owned by Lucille Miles, was recognized at the Colorado State Fair for being in the family for over 100 years.

Lance Murray, a member of Holyoke Volunteer Fire Dept., climbs the 55 stories of the Quest building in Denver to honor the firefighters who died in the collapse of the World Trade Center Sept. 11, 2001.

PC Telcom returns to its customer service office at 240 S. Interocean Ave.

Sept. 24

Holyoke School District Re-1J School Board moves forward with three recommendations for year two of the JR/SR High random drug testing program.

Tommy Thompson, Ron Thompson and Charlie Triplette attend Holyoke City Council meeting to discuss warnings received regarding junk vehicles on their property.

Albert Bahler celebrates his 100th birthday Sept. 18.

Rod Ellis recovers after a successful kidney transplant from his former classmate Clay Warren.

H1N1 flu virus is detected in Phillips County, according to hospital officials and Northeast Colorado Health Department.

Flu committee is formed at East Phillips County Hospital District board meeting.

Brittney Ferguson continues to make progress one year after auto accident.

Oct. 8

First year member Taylor Hendrix gets enthusiastically involved in 4-H.

Phillips County commissioners report the county’s preliminary assessed value is $58,327,170, a $9.3 million increase from last year’s $48,975,446 due to high natural gas production income in 2008.

A new boiler is installed at the Phillips County Courthouse.

Oct. 15

Preliminary school enrollment is at 634, an increase of 26 from one year ago.

An audit of the random drug testing of Holyoke students in grades 7-12 involved in extra-curricular activities is completed. A committee will review the policy and introduce new procedures to meet recommendations.

First snow of the year brings about three inches.

A nationwide shortage of the flu vaccine is felt in Holyoke, and officials expect the vaccine to arrive soon.

My Little Angel Toy Drive is launched in Holyoke to pay tribute to the memory of children who are no longer living.